Rise
by Numbuh1367
Summary: James is having trouble at school and is bullied almost every day. He gets fed up and decides to take matters into his own hands. Mostly Peace Walker-centric, deals with bullying and homophobia. Just a little something to vent frustration into for me.
1. Intro

Crouched down, I started very slowly moving towards a hole in the wall, the decaying ruins around me not doing much to conceal my footsteps. I keep my weapon, A MK. 22 "Hush Puppy", pointed in front of me at the ready. Unfortunately the suppressor for the pistol had broken a while back after one too many tranquilizer rounds had been fired, so I would only be able to use it in a life-or-death situation, or else risk giving up my position to the enemy.

I round the corner, scanning the enviroment with my one good eye, before moving on. I continued on the small path through the Costa Rican jungle, wondering to myself about the mess of things back on Mother Base, some of the men had been complaining about the state of the food that Mess Hall had been giving out. "_I should keep my eye out for some better cooks on recruitment runs._" I think to myself.

"Huh!?"

Shit, I've been seen! I should've been paying more attention!  
>I stand to full height and start to sprint away from the soldier that had spotted me, my bandanna flapping in the wind as I run.<p>

"Enemy sighted! Requesting backup!"

"Damn!" I audibly curse, willing myself to run even faster.  
>I start to hear rifle fire from behind me, coming in short bursts to keep accuracy high.<p>

I reach a bridge before I see them. Large, heavily armored, brutes coming from the other side.  
>I was trapped!<br>I raised my pistol and fired a shot at the squad leader, the tranq round harmlessly bouncing off his thick helmet. He raises his M16 and does the same to me, with considerably more effective results as one of the rounds enters my left thigh.

The pain is excruciating, but I fight though it, looking for an opportunity to get out of this mess.  
>I quickly turn around, desperately hoping the route back into the jungle would be clear, but instead finding more heavily armed soldiers.<p>

They start to raise their rifles to take the shot as I see only one alternative to maybe get out alive.

I quickly turn to the side and hurdle the safety ropes of the bridge, feeling a vague sense of nostalgia as I plummet towards the rushing river below.

It was faint, but I could almost hear Kaz's voice in my ear.

"Snake? What's wrong? Snake!? Snaaaaaaaaake!"

* * *

><p>I woke with a start, the faint glimmers of early morning sunlight shining through the window.<br>I quickly reached up and felt around my face.

No eyepatch, No bandanna, No stubble.

I sighed in relief before flopping down on my pillow again, hoping to catch a little more rest before-

"Beep-beep, beep-beep, beep-beep."

I sigh deeply before getting up and silencing my alarm clock before starting my morning routine.  
>I get up and strip out of my nightwear of a tank-top and boxer shorts before slipping on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Then I brush my teeth, as I do this, I look in the mirror of my bathroom and see myself staring back. A rather scrawny 15 year old with messy hair and a sour look staring at me from the reflective material.<p>

Unfortunately, no. I am not Big Boss. I didn't kill The Boss to earn my title, I didn't thwart the San Hieronymo Takeover, and I didn't stop Peace Walker and create Militaires Sans Frontières.

No, I am James, just a depressed teenager on my way to high school.

And disappointingly, absolutely nothing else.

* * *

><p><strong>More to come later, by the way. <strong>  
><strong>Yes, this will be a bit of a self-insert though stupid sci-fi means, and it will have some scenes in real life that contain bullying and homophobia. I actually understand if you don't like reading stuff like that, but this is just something for me to pass some time and frustration with. So I'm not really going to be hurt if you don't like it.<strong>

**Speaking of, next chapter is probably not going to have a lot of Metal Gear stuff in it, but it's building up to it.**

**Next time,**

**-James**


	2. Definitely Not Big Boss

It was currently 6:02 A.M. on December 12th, 2014. I walked down the stairs of my house and entered the kitchen, most of my family hadn't awoken yet due to having later starts in their day.

I slowly started to prepare myself a breakfast as i waited for the clock to reach the window of when the bus would most likely arrive. I yawned deeply, wishing I had been able to get a few more hours of sleep before I had decided to hurl myself off of a bridge into a Costa Rican river rapids.

I glanced at the clock again and saw that it would be time to leave soon. I grabbed my backpack and coat and headed out the door to my bus stop.

The air was cool and thin, trademark for the local winter. Accompanying the cold air was a fine layer of snow on the ground. Almost tall enough for the schools to call a snow day, but I wasn't _that_ lucky.

I put my hood up in a desperate attempt to keep some of the warmth inside my body as the school bus rounded the corner

The bus doors swung open as I piled into the half full bus. Looking around, I decided that a quiet backseat would be best for me today so I could be alone with my thoughts.

In fact, I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't have time to notice the foot that abruptly jutted out as I my way to the back of the bus. I desperately flailed around trying to catch myself, but to no avail. My head slammed into the floor of the bus as mass the students around me erupted into a fit of laughter. I got up and quickly searched out my would-be assailant, but I couldn't pick out who had tripped me.

I sullenly made my way to the back and sat down heavily before noticing my lip felt oddly wet.

I wiped away the liquid with my hand only to find out that the liquid was blood. The fall had given me a nosebleed.

With a deep sigh, I pressed my sleeve against my nose and tipped my head back, hoping to stop the blood flow before it got too messy.

"Today is going to be long isn't it?"

* * *

><p>The day had been long, far too long in my opinion. For starters, I had managed to be tripped on the way <em>out <em>of the bus as well, starting the well of blood I had just stopped to start gushing up again.

Then in homeroom, I had found my homework missing from my backpack, even though I had made sure to put it in before leaving the house, meaning I had to do it again if I didn't want trouble.

Then in Science, someone "accidentally " set fire to my coat, meaning I had to face the cold snow in only a t-shirt.

In Math, someone threw my calculator on the ground, meaning I had to go through the lesson almost blind.

Unfortunately, in recounting these events, it had caused yet another attack, in which i was picked up and thrown into mud. Cold, snowy, slush-mud. Without a jacket.

I. Was. Done.

I jumped up from the cold mud and whirled around to see who had pushed me. Unlike the bus, though, this time I saw him.

He was a large kid for his age, most likely bulk built up for sports. He was wearing a red pullover hoodie, that to it's credit, looked very warm. Well, warmer than my mud-caked clothes at any rate.

"And just what the fuck was that for?" I demanded. The jerk just sort of smirked at me.

"What do you think it was for? I'm doing this place a favor, people won't have to look at your faggot face with all that mud on it." He sneered. I didn't care anymore at that point. The day had been building up to that point and I had taken all I had taken all I could stand. I had endured 4 hours of bullshit just to find out that it was because I was gay. So I did the only thing my mind would let me do at that point.

I punched him.

I punched him as hard as I could, but I quickly found that it had been a mistake, as he had come back with a vengeance, throwing punch after punch at me as I found no way to defend myself from the barrage. I blacked out.

* * *

><p>I came to about an hour later to someone carrying me to the nurse's office. I didn't care who the person was at this point, I was just glad to be out of the cold. As I was being laid down on the makeshift hospital bed in the nurse's office I was able to finally see my savior from the cold.<p>

He was a little taller than me and had dark hair and wore a long coat, which he was beginning to drape over me like a blanket, when he noticed I had woken up.

"Oh good, you woke up, I was starting to worry. How're you feeling?"

I tried to sit up, only to find that trying to move caused a large amount of pain. I coughed heavily and replied, "Not good, it hurts to move."

A worried look crossed his face. He held his hands up in a way to show that he wanted to check my injuries.

"May I?"

I nodded slowly, as he started to feel along my chest and arms.

"Well, it's looks like you have a cracked rib, a broken leg, and a possibly sprained or broken wrist. Looks like you've won a trip to the hospital...Sorry, I didn't catch a name."

"James, what about you?" I smiled at him, he seemed really nice.

"Shaun, nice to meet you." He smiled back, beaming before adopting a more sarcastic look.  
>"Although, it would have been better to meet under less...painful circumstances."<p>

I grinned profusely. Well, if there had been a plus side to today, at least I met Shaun.

* * *

><p><strong>And it's the NEXT chapter that starts the stupid sci-fi stuff. God, the more I write this, the more comments I feel like I'm gonna see saying stuff like "This is really dumb and has nothing to do with Metal Gear and feels like a shoe-horned gay love story." and goddamn if I'm not right there with you, but I'm just writing what I feel like writing, and that is unfortunately is a gay, sci-fi, love story with, like, a 'Matrix' edge to it.<strong>

**Sucks, don't it?**

**-James**


	3. The Christmas Chapter or Did you just?

**Hi again, so I know I keep kinda saying I don't have any stock put into this story, and that's kinda true. However, it would be great if I could hear your thoughts on it. Plot-wise or on my writing style, or anything like that, would be great. Constructive critism is always good.**

* * *

><p>2:22<p>

I sat glumly in my hospital bed, bored out of my mind, staring at the wall and trying to will it to cave in from mental thought alone. I had been bored for the few weeks I had been here, but more so today than usual.

I had no idea why I was so restless today, but it was driving me insane. I looked at the clock on the wall.

2:33

I slammed my head back into my pillow repeatedly. This was torture.

"Tap-Tap-Tap"

I sat up as the door to my room swung open to reveal my Mom.

"Hiya, Little Dude! I hope you're feeling better."

I looked up with a smile, if there was one thing I could count on, rain or shine, it would be my Mom.

"Yeah, a little, I wish my leg would stop itching under my cast but that can't really be helped. So, what brings you around?"

She looked incredulously at me, "What?! You can't have forgotten what today is?"

"Ma, I don't even know _what_ day it is. Not being in school and having nothing to do really makes it hard to keep track of the days."

"Well then maybe _this_ will jog your memory!" She opened the door and grabbed a brightly wrapped box into the room.

"It's Christmas!" she shouted into the room, holding the box over her head.

"Oh wow, I hadn't even thought of that! Thanks Mom!"

She hands the box to me as I notice it's a few boxes sort of lashed into one, I take them apart and look over them.

"Now I am going to admit," Mom says, "one of those _is_ just something I repackaged from your room. Don't worry, though. From the sound of it, you probably need it more than ever."

I slowly open the presents, making sure I don't make too big of a mess and piss off the nurses.

The first present was a new DVD player and some films, and the second was a new jacket to replace the one that got burned. I turned the final present over in my hands, trying to guess what it was.

"Well, I know this has to be the one from my room... It's a little bigger than my cell phone, but I already have that with me...Eh, I can't guess."

I tear open the package to find.

"Oh, my PSP! Thanks, Mom."

I turned it over to find one of the games taped to the back, my copy of Peace Walker.

I visibly darkened, remembering that it was this game that caused that dream on the day I got attacked.

BEEP-BEEP

Mom's watch angrily beeped as she checked her watch.

"Oh man, Is it already? Hey champ, I'm gonna have to go home soon and make dinner, ae you gonna be okay?"

"Yeah... I'll be fine... Have a Merry Christmas, Mom."

She smiled brightly back at me as she headed out the door.

"You too, James. Have a good night."

The door closed softly as I stared back up at the ceiling, wondering what I should do next.

I decided to watch a movie, as I reached for the player, the door opened again.

"Hey James, how're you feeling?" Shaun stepped quietly into the room.

I started to smile even harder, if that was possible.

Shaun and I had become good friends ever since the day he saved my sorry ass from hypothermia and gotten me to the hospital for treatment. And I had unfortunately devoloped a sort of crush on him. He was sweet and smart and apparently a kickass cook, so sue me, I found myself liking him more than I probably should. Not that I was gonna let him _know_ that.

"Better now that you showed up."

Or maybe he might just figure it out if I say stupid things like that, _why did I say that out loud?_

"Okay, I just wanted to stop by and wish you a Merry Christmas and all that. I also got you a present."

"Really? Aw, that nice of you... Makes me a little guilty that I couldn't get you anything."

He held out a small box with a bow on it.

"I didn't really know what to get you, so I just sort of went back to basics."

He started rubbing the back of his head as I opened the box. It had a small chain bracelet inside.

He started to blush a little.

"Now I'm kinda worried you might think it's girly.

I chuckled. "Don't worry, it's perfect."

He flopped over comedically. "Oh thank Christ. I was worried you were gonna, like, reject it or something."

"I wouldn't do that to you, you're too nice." Again, brain? _Again!?_

"Aw, you're really nice, too."

I frowned a little. "I wish I was a little less nice, then I wouldn't have gotten my ass kicked by that guy in the school."

"Hey, don't worry about it. If he bothers you again you can get me, okay?"

I sigh deeply. "That's not the point, I wish I didn't need someone to hide behind. That I was strong enough on my own..."

Shaun pondered for a moment before looking back at me. "You could always take up a martial art, then you could maybe see how well you do on your own."

" Maybe..." I thought for a moment, wondering if I should take a shot, before he looked up at the wall clock.

"Oh boy, my parents are gonna want me home soon, I'd better go."

He stood up and made for the door before my body almost seemed to move on it's own.

"W-Wait!"

He stopped halfway out the door.

"What's up?"

I took a deep breath and scrunched my eyes shut as I mentally prepared myself to say what I was going to say next.

"Maybe, when I'm out of here, would you maybe wanna go do something?"

I paused for a second.

"C-Cause I really like you and you're nice and I thought that maybe I could at least try once please don't hate me.

I paused for a few more more seconds before opening my eyes to see him still in the doorway.

He turned back around, smile on his face.

"See, you're braver than you give yourself credit."

He pulled out a piece of paper and wrote something on it before he handed it to me and walked back out the door.

I unfolded the paper and looked at the writing inside.

It was his phone number and a small note

'_Txt me when you get out. ;)_'

I pumped my fist in the air.

"Fuck yes!"

* * *

><p><em>One week later<em>

It had taken some effort, but my leg was almost fully healed. Thank God for slightly above average healing rates.

I had been thinking about Shaun and what he had said for the past week.

I had been looking at tons of different self defence classes, but none of them sounded that good, and they were expensive to boot.

It was just then that something I never expected to happen, well, happened.

A large blue portal opened up in the middle of my room, and out stepped... me?

"Yeah, Hi, Im the you from the universe that's writing this, And I am so sorry for breaking immersion like this, but I have been thinking for hours and I can't think of another way i like for this to happen, so here."

He...I...Whatever, held his hand out and dropped what looked like a PSP into my hands.

"So yeah, you're supposed to go in there and learn CQC from Big Boss and have this awesome Matrix-style story, while juggiling real life and I just could not think of a legit way for you to get this device."

Still getting over the shock of seeing my apparently alter-universe self. All I could do was stand there and nod.

"Okay, that's basically it, just lie on the bed, turn it on, and... well it's like Sword Art Online. you just go in, you'll be fine. Okay bye!"

He turned around and left in the same portal before it wooshed shut.

All I could do at that point was lay down and go to bed. I was obviously hallucinating and needed rest.

* * *

><p><strong>So...yeah... I honestly couldn't think of anything, at first he just built it but that sounded too dumb, and then I thought that he might stumble across it but that sounded too convinient.<strong>  
><strong>Whatever, I self-inserted myself into a self-insert that is in essence already talking about self-inserting myself into Peace Walker. WHAT, BRO. YOU GOT BEEF!?<strong>

**jkpleasedonthateme.**


	4. Enter Peace Walker or That Was Short

**Heh, how about that last chapter, eh? Sure did have a satisfying end to it, huh? Heh...hehe...ehn... **

**I'm an idiot, okay? Like, legitimately an idiot when it comes to my own stories...**

**However I am pretty kick-ass at consultation for stories, so if you need help hit me up.**

* * *

><p>I woke with a start and quickly looked over at my bedside table, vaguely hoping that last night's events had been nothing but a fevered dream. Much to my dismay, however, the PSP that my apparent other-universe counterpart had given me was still here.<p>

I slowly, cautiously, picked up the device.

It looked like a regular old PSP, hell it looked like it was a copy of mine, which considering the fact it was from alternate universe me, made it likely it was a copy of mine. I opened the disk tray and peered in, but save a few extra wires, it looked like a base model. How was this thing supposed to work like the Matrix or Sword Art Online?

I booted it up and was welcomed to the familiar sight of the PSP home screen. Everything looked the same for the most part, except for a new sub-menu shaped like a headphone jack. Upon selection, a prompt jumped on-screen.

"Connect to [Tray Empty]?"

I realized that I hadn't put any games into the tray. I looked over at my games before my eyes almost immediately locked onto the Peace Walker disk.

"_Y__ou're supposed to go in there and learn CQC from Big Boss and have this awesome Matrix-style story."_

Alternate Me's voice echoed in my head as I picked up the disk. Should I really tempt fate?

I slid the disk into the tray and closed it, after a few seconds of buffering, the prompt changed.

"Connect to Peace Walker?"

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes as I hit the X button, A wave of nausea hit me before I fainted and fell back into my waiting bed.

* * *

><p>Salt<p>

The air definitely smelled like salt and I could hear an ocean.

This was an odd dream, the air smells salty, I hear an ocean, and I'm vaguely sure I'm pressed against something hard.

Wait

My eyes snapped open to a clear blue sky, I quickly rolled to my feet and looked around.

Metal structure stretched for a good mile ahead of me connected to other large metal structures.

I turned to my right and confirmed my suspicions as I was about twenty feet away from a large building with a logo emblazoned on the front. It was a skull on a yellow background with three wored encircling it.

_Militaires Sans Frontières_

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, finally in Peace Walker. Now we can get the story rolling! Please forgive how short this chapter is, it's more a transition into the next than it's own chapter. If you can, it would be great if you could leave a review to let me know any thoughts or tips on how I might be able to improve the story, my writing style, ect. Also that offer stands for anyone who needs a helping hand.<strong>


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